Emotion born out of association. This branch bears a profusion of pom-pom like white flowers. Is this the magical moment of wonderment celebrated by the Japanese tradition of hanami as trees burst into blossom? The reference here is less straightforward, since the burgeoning blossom is not petals, but snow. So it is not the season that is striking, but the poetic impact created by the exceptionally detailed work involved in mimicking tree bark and the delicate composition of pearl flowers. Out of this highly technical alchemy emerges the mysterious beauty of the ephemeral. A rare single piece that echoes Hokusai’s snow-weighted branches.

Sam Tho Duong (b. 1969) is Vietnamese by birth and learned his craft as a jeweller in Germany. His talent was quickly recognised, and he received his first prestigious Herbert Hofmann Prize in 2009, and has continued to do so every year since. The Victoria and Albert Museum acquired one of these extraordinary necklaces from the same Frozen collection and featured it on the catalogue cover and poster for its Pearls exhibition of 2013.

1. Hanami, Japanese 19th century, referring to the tradition of meeting to view the new cherry blossom: hana (flower) and mi (the act of looking). 2. The Herbert Hofmann Prize was first awarded in 1973, is the most prestigious award for avant-garde jewellery, and is presented annually at the Schmuckzene in Munich.